Pakistan takes offence after Indian cricket team wears special edition army cap during Ranchi ODI

Indian cricket team wearing their special edition army caps. (Source: Twitter)

Pakistan has taken great umbrage after the Indian cricket team wore special camouflaged army caps paying tribute to the forces during the third ODI against Australia in Ranchi. The gesture was believed to be an initiative of former Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and the whole Indian team also donated their match fees from the game to the Indian armed forces.

#TeamIndia will be sporting camouflage caps today as mark of tribute to the loss of lives in Pulwama terror attack and the armed forces

“It’s a special cap. This is to pay respect to the martyrs … and their families.”

Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has now appealed to the International Cricket Council, accusing India of politicizing the matter.

He said as quoted by Al Jazeera:

“The world saw that the Indian cricket team wore military caps instead of their own, did ICC not see this? We think that it is the ICC’s responsibility to take notice of this without the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) bringing it up.”

It’s just not cricket. I hope ICC will take action for politicizing Gentleman’s game … if Indian Cricket team ll not be stopped, Pak Cricket team should wear black bands to remind The World about Indian atrocities in Kashmir… I urge #PCB to lodge formal protest.”

Tensions have been high between the two nations after a terror attack on the Indian armed forces in Pulwama which led to 40 members of the CRPF being martyred. India responded by launching air strikes of their own in the Pakistani region of Balakot.